The Bull Rad Rig: Infanta 4x4 Inkunzi Camper

When it comes to testing a camper, nothing beats going with the manufacturer to take the unit for a day of hard driving (and loads of fun) in the dunes! So we jumped at the chance to join father-and-son team JW and Jurie Swart of Infanta 4x4 to test the new Inkunzi 4x4 off-road camper at Atlantis in the Cape.

- Stuart Reichardt

We met in the parking lot at the entrance to the reserve in the morning, and it wasn’t long before Hein Burnett from Burnco 4x4 was behind the wheel and churning through the sand. He is an old hand at competing in 4x4 challenges, and seems to know exactly how far to push up the sides of the slopes always seeming to avoid a rollover at the last second.

Hein really put the Inkunzi through its paces, and after a good few hours of ramping the slopes, it was clear that this 4x4 campervan is built exceptionally well. I asked Infanta 4x4 owner JW Swart how the van was named, and he had this to say: “Inkunzi means “bull” in Xhosa – and this camper, combined with the V8 Cruiser has the personality traits of a bull: stubborn, strong-willed and maybe a bit belligerent.”

The build

Building the Inkunzi was accomplished after two years of intensive planning and work to get the interior design and functionality right, coupled with about 120 000km of off-road testing.

Infanta 4x4 build a range of off-road trailers to a high specification, so this was an adaptation of proven technology. As weight is the major enemy of off-roading, especially when you are directly carrying your sleeping and cooking quarters, this guides the choice of materials.

The frame is made from welded aluminium square tube with a double skin of aluminium sheet sandwiching a 38mm polystyrene core. Joints are sealed with mastic, and the unit is then sprayed in Duco to a standard colour or to match the customer’s vehicle. The result is a rigid, lightweight and well-insulated structure.

Infanta 4x4’s Inkunzi unit is built on a Toyota Land Cruiser 79 Series single cab, though it can be built on any locally available long-wheelbase single-cab chassis.